Recommended Websites on Economics

Center for Economic and Policy Research
"The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) was established in 1999 to promote democratic debate on the most important economic and social issues that affect people's lives. In order for citizens to effectively exercise their voices in a democracy, they should be informed about the problems and choices that they face. CEPR is committed to presenting issues in an accurate and understandable manner, so that the public is better prepared to choose among the various policy options."
Institute of Economic Affairs
"The IEA is the UK's original free-market think-tank, founded in 1955. Our mission is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems."
International Economic Develeopment Council
"The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to helping economic developers do their job more effectively and raising the profile of the profession."
International Monetary Fund
"The IMF works to foster global growth and economic stability. It provides policy advice and financing to members in economic difficulties and also works with developing nations to help them achieve macroeconomic stability and reduce poverty."
Levy Economics Institute
"The Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, founded in 1986 through the generous support of Bard College trustee Leon Levy, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, public policy research organization. The Levy Institute is independent of any political or other affiliation, and encourages diversity of opinion in the examination of economic policy issues while striving to transform ideological arguments into informed debate."
National Association for Business Economics
"NABE is the premier professional association for business economists and others who use economics in the workplace. Since 1959, NABE has attracted the most prominent figures in economics, business, and academia to its membership with highly-regarded conferences, educational and career development offerings, industry surveys, and its unrivaled networking opportunities."
National Bureau of Economic Research
"Founded in 1920, the National Bureau of Economic Research is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization dedicated to promoting a greater understanding of how the economy works. The NBER is committed to undertaking and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and the academic community."
Peterson Institute for International Economics
"The Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research institution devoted to the study of international economic policy. Since 1981 the Institute has provided timely and objective analysis of, and concrete solutions to, a wide range of international economic problems. It is one of the very few economics think tanks that are widely regarded as "nonpartisan" by the press and "neutral" by the US Congress, and its research staff is cited by the quality media more than that of any other such institution."

Fact Checking

Fact Checking Tips

When you come across articles like this you want to keep five things in mind:

Check your emotions- We are less likely to question things that cause us extreme joy or anger. Many websites that want clicks will purposefully create headlines, or stories, that invoke these emotions. If you find yourself feeling strongly about a headline, you'll want to look into it more.
Check for previous work: Look around to see if someone else has already fact-checked the claim or provided a synthesis of research.
Go upstream to the source: Go “upstream” to the source of the claim. Most web content is not original. Get to the original source to understand the trustworthiness of the information.
Read laterally: Read laterally. Once you get to the source of a claim, read what other people say about the source (publication, author, etc.). The truth is in the network. We will be covering this more in Unit 9.
Circle back: If you get lost, hit dead ends, or find yourself going down an increasingly confusing rabbit hole, back up and start over knowing what you know now. You’re likely to take a more informed path with different search terms and better decisions.

Fact Checking Websites

There are a number of very good fact checking websites out there that you can go to when someone sends you an email, posts something on social media, or tells you a "true" story that gives you pause

Snopes
Great for fact checking "news" and rumors shared on social media, email, ect.
PolitiFact
Useful for checking political based claims and stories. Includes analysis of politician statements.
Washington Post Fact Checker
Good for keeping up-to-date on fact checking politician's statements and claims. Especially useful during elections.
Wikipedia
Whaaaaaaat?!? Yes, it's true! Authors in Wikipedia are required to write in a neutral tone and use reliable sources to cite their facts. You should still use caution when using Wikipedia, but it is useful for starting your research and getting consensus on a subject.

Adapted from Web Literacy for Fact Checkers by Michael A. Caulfield.

Google Scholar

What we love about Google Scholar: Who DOESN'T love Google: powerful, fast, and bountiful!

What drives us crazy about Google Scholar: Many of the articles in Google Scholar are not full-text unless you pay money. Hint: We have found that citations with a "PDF" on the right side of the screen usually are full-text.

Not able to find the full-text for free? E-mail the citation (the basic information) to me, and we will try to track down the article. Never pay for an article! If we can't get it for free, we might be able to pay for it, but you should never pay for an article!

Google News

Google News aggregates headlines from news sources worldwide, groups similar stories together and displays them according to each reader's personalized interests.

When doing a search in Google News, notice:

"Sections" on the left side of the page. These are similar to different sections you would see in a print newspaper. For example, if you are interested in the economics of dementia, you might limit your search to the Business section. Note that there are more sections than appear by default. Click "add a section" in the upper right corner for more choices.

Results Display. Google uses a complex formula to identify the order of the results. You should not assume the most recent results are at the top of the list -- they are more likely to be the most "popular."

Similar Articles. If you find an interesting article and want to see more like it, click the double "up arrow" icon next to the story to get related articles.

To search Google News click here: news.google.com

Text adopted from UC San Diego Library